47 comments:

The east African food at the Buraka cart is outstanding. FIB will have to serve some mighty good beef to compete. This post on the heels of the Bill Ayers kerfluffle reminded me that somewhere I had heard that one of the 1970 Sterling Hall bombers was running a juice cart on the library mall. Wikipedia seems to confirm this, so I suppose it might be true.

You finally get to see peoples arms and tits and that is very important. Legs I don't care much about and don't want to see men in shorts just like Althouse-hee hee, hugs. Also, there heads are up because they aren't ducking the cold so you can see their faces better-especially when the sun hits them.

I love walking around in warm weather and looking at people. It makes me horny.

Wonder if FIB's Italian beef is any good. Haven't been able to find any place in Madison that has lean Italian beef. Gino's beef sandwich is terrible. Portillo's in Chicago is great. Wish they'd open a branch here.

This is the first picture I have seen that even remotely makes New York seem to be a place that I wouldn't cringe to visit. Everyone looks happy, relaxed,the vendors look like they are having a good day and most importantly no grafitti or depressingly decaying brick buildings.

I left Madison in early 1983, and have only visited back once, I believe around 1986 or '87. Those shots of Library Mall, the U. Club, etc. have a sort of soothing effect on me that so much remains the same. Had you turned around 180 and aimed the camera down State Street, the picture would go a long way in explaining why I haven't returned since. Even by the time of that one visit back, I found State Street disturbingly glitzy.

Readers from elsewhere may not realize that FIB is an epithet directed toward people from Illinois in parts of Wisconsin, even - or especially - those that benefit from all the tourist dollars. Presumably, the cart's proprietor and patrons are aware of this. (Hint: the "I" stands for Illinois.)

FIB is an epithet directed toward people from Illinois in parts of WisconsinWhile it's been awhile since I've ventured into Cheeseland it seems like the farther north one got the less likely you were to be referred to as a FIB. I always thought it was strange as if it weren't for the people of Illinois spending their money in Wisconsin the state might go broke.

I have difficulty eating food from a cart, as it is two steps below even a dinner party, where one must balance a paper plate on the knee while spilling one's drink down the front of your pants.

It spells "hurry up" to me, "I am hungry and must eat now". Ugh.

I have only a brief respite from rushing through the morning and rushing through the afternoon. I would at least like to fake serenity for a half hour, sitting, calmly using actual utensils, at an actual table, not a concrete curb.

Well Dust Bunny Queen, a lot of your sense of what Brooklyn and New York is like from the professors photos is somewhat skewed because she likes desolate landscapes and dogs urinating. There are plenty of great shots of the garden side of Brooklyn that just didn't make the cut. The new series in the Brooklyn Botanical Garden shows the greener side of my fair borough. I must admit that I went to Frisco on my honeymoon and thought it was one of the worst cities I ever had to misfortune to visit. The highlight that so many people told us to be sure to visit was Alcatraz. A prison. That's like coming to New York and being told not to miss Rikers Island. I guess I didn't get to see the city the way a native would so I have to suspend final judgment until someone took me on a tour. Same with New York. You can't judge it by Times Square and the urban jungle shots you have been seeing from the professor.

Madison seems very nice; I just think so many commie pinko's in one place would make me sneeze a lot. All the best, your pal Trooper.

If the professor wants some shots of a real bunch of carts and al fresco eating she should go to Red Hook park where Mexican and South American immigrants have set up these great food stands and there is a big party every weekend near the ball field. You will get real authentic Mexican and South American food from Guatemala, Peru, Bolivia and other points south of the border. Roast guinea pig on a stick has been known to make an appearance for you adventous diners. Know officially as the South Brooklyn open air food festival it is informally know by the guys in Red Hook projects as the spicnic and it is one of the best places for outdoor eating in NYC

Quite a few of the pizza joints in the city are now owned by Albanians who have also become a lot of the muscle used by the Italian mob. Albanians are about as close as you can get to the old school guineas who came over from the other side to start the pushcarts and pizzerias. They will work the long hours and take the crap to make a good living. So Albanians selling Italian sausage is par for the course.(of course a Mexican will be the guy actually cooking the stuff, that's America land of opportunity).

hey, don't pick on me; your host is the one who hates you. Tents and tables can be rented; if necessary card tables and folding chairs can be borrowed. The VFW and the K of C can be rented; even trailer parks have clubhouses that can be reserved.